A/N: Chapter 3's up! And as earlier on my profile, I would like to thank the lovely people who have been reading, reviewing, and favoriting my story. You make me so happy.
And a big thank you to Aniki the Infamous for beta-ing.
Disclaimer: Me don't thinks me own it.
Severus Snape stared down at the two students, one gazing up at him hopefully and the other staring off thinking about things that he was quite sure were not appropriate.
"And what would you intend to use a love potion for, Miss Parkinson? Love potions are an idiot's way out, a way to skirt the planning and cunning required to make someone fall in love of their own free will. Slytherins are cunning, Miss Parkinson. We have no use for love potions." Severus folded his arms over his cloak and moved swiftly away from the pair, heading towards the softly simmering potion in the corner of the room. Pansy followed him mulishly, inching in front of him slowly. Blaise didn't appear to notice the change.
"Professor, I don't want anyone to fall in love with me, nor am I attempting to skirt preparations. I'll even make the love potion, so all you'll need to do is help me get the ingredients and the instructions."
Severus attempted to move around her to reach the potion, which thankfully did not require constant assistance, but Pansy simply sidled around the cauldron as he moved, the irritating child.
"And what would you need a love potion for, if not to make someone fall in love with you?"
Pansy opened her mouth, and then closed it suddenly, her eyes snapping over to Blaise for a second, but then back to Severus, refusing to meet his eyes. Severus felt a wave of triumph, and he smirked.
"That's what I thought."
"If you're not looking for a serious relationship, it's not really worth it to invest your time, and charm doesn't always work as well as magic. We reasoned that you would be more likely to agree if Pansy, a decent student, asked you, than if I, a slightly distracted student, asked you." Blaise spoke up.
Severus raised an eyebrow and turned away from Pansy, staring at Blaise, who shrugged. Pansy spun around, pausing, but then stalking forward and standing behind Blaise. "Wasn't that what you wanted, Professor? Educated thinking of whose request you would be most likely to agree to? I was simply assisting Blaise's quest in search of…" Pansy trailed off, biting her lip and looking away. "…We'll call it conquests."
Severus wasn't sure whether he should jump for joy that his students were thinking so logically, or be appalled at Blaise and Pansy's motives. After a short moment of reflection, he decided to just ignore both. "While your reasoning is correct, it would have been greatly more efficient to simply ask me, and see if I would comply."
"Will you comply to Blaise's need for a love potion?" Pansy smirked, flipping her hair over a shoulder.
Severus frowned, something in the back of his brain demanding attention, but shrugged it aside. There was no reason not to assist the students, as long as they didn't intend to use it for illegal purposes…
"I suppose," he drawled, moving back to the corner to stir the potion. "I will notify you when I have chosen a suitably weak potion for your purpose. Please leave me now."
He could've sworn he saw a flash of panic fly across Pansy's face, but if Severus had indeed seen such a thing, it was schooled away within a moment.
Blaise tugged on Pansy's arm, pulling her from the classroom. "Thank you, Professor! We'll go!" Pansy stumbled out of the room, nearly falling forward onto Blaise.
"Blaise!" She hissed, drawing back and closing the classroom door. "He said a suitably weak potion! We don't want a suitably weak potion, we want a suitably strong potion. Nothing less will make a Gryffindor fall in love with a Slytherin!"
Blaise sighed, leaning back against the wall on one elbow and ignoring the sharp pain from the stone. "Pansy, dear, don't worry so much. Yes, he is preparing a suitably weak potion for the excuse we gave him. We can strengthen it ourselves a bit, but even a weak potion that will last but a few hours will assist us greatly. A little push and a few hours can go a long way. And he'll probably give us a book, and in the surrounding pages might be a stronger potion that we can request the ingredients for from our parents. We're fine. It's better than what we were about to get."
Pansy nodded and fell back against the opposite wall, sighing slightly. "Sorry, Blaise, darling. I suppose I just got a little carried away. What do you think Draco's doing right now, while we're wasting at his expense?"
Blaise laughed, turning so he was facing Pansy. "Probably sitting on his bed and mooning over random portraits of Potter while wondering what we're doing instead of going to the kitchens."
"Probably," Pansy giggled, and ducked forward to link her arm through Blaise's. "Do you want to go to the kitchens just to confuse him?"
Blaise grinned. "Sure."
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Hermione heard a small sniffle to her right, and she sighed into her book. It had been ten minutes since Ginny had discovered her corner, yet it felt like ten hours of ignoring small sniffles and muttered curses at Harry. It was no wonder witches and wizards had evolved the Calming Potion so that all the ingredients were common enough to be in the average potions store cupboard.
A book slammed down in front of her, and Hermione heard several people shushing the newcomer.
Ginny frowned up at him. "Go away, Malfoy. Read somewhere else."
Hermione chanced a look up, glancing into Malfoy's eyes. He stared back down at her, pointedly ignoring Ginny. "A private word, Granger?"
Hermione stood quickly before Ginny could start a long, sniffling protest. "I'll be back in a minute, Ginny. Malfoy and I have some business to attend to; it won't take a moment." She grabbed Malfoy's arm, leading him away from the table to the opposite side of the room's seating before he could say another word. "What, Malfoy? Did you want to apologize for running off earlier?"
Malfoy grimaced and shook his head jerkily, reaching up to run pale fingers through his hair. "No, Granger. Look, I need your help. A bit ago, I helped Potter find his way out of the dungeons because he was lost. Now Pansy and Blaise seem to think there is something going on between me and Potter."
Hermione swiftly withdrew from him, crossing her arms and glaring back at Malfoy. "And what do you intend for me to do about it? Your friends, your problem, Malfoy."
"You don't understand, Granger," Malfoy growled softly, grabbing her shoulder roughly. "These are Slytherins, not your goody-two-shoes Gryffindors. There's no telling what they'll do. They'll either attempt to drive me away from Potter using any means possible, or they'll try to drive Potter towards me using every means possible."
Hermione rolled her eyes, exaggerating the movement as much as she could. Honestly, Malfoy's nerve… "Again, what do you expect me to do? I don't care what happens, as long as Harry doesn't get hurt." She yanked away from his tight grip and languidly made her way back towards the table.
Hermione noted that Ginny had left. Good. She could find someone else to moan and sniffle to. Meanwhile, she had work to do.
"He could."
The murmur was so soft, so faint, that Hermione could've sworn it had been a whisper on the wind. She stopped, and glanced over her shoulder at Malfoy. "What?"
Malfoy met her eyes sorrowfully, fiddling with his shirtsleeve and the table corner he stood beside, running his fingers gently across the edges.
"Harry could get hurt. Every means possible means, Granger, every means possible. If hurting Harry is the only way they can drive me away from them, that's what they'll do. If hurting Harry is the only way they can drive him towards me, that's what they'll do. Gryffindors aren't the kings and queens you try to protect, Granger. They're the pawns you station in front, or expend at leisure. Even the Boy-Who-Lived."
Hermione spun around and stared, part of her realizing that Malfoy had once again called him Harry.
"How could he get hurt? What do you mean, Malfoy? How will they hurt him?" She crossed the few steps between them, grabbing Malfoy's wrists, and raising them slightly, not noticing that she was absentmindedly tracing her thumbs along the green and silver trim of the boy's shirt.
Draco shrugged, mentally running through all of Pansy's past plots in his head. "I don't know, Granger. Pansy's been known to get rather… creative. If Blaise puts his mind to it, he can also be quite the enemy or quite the asset, depending on if he chooses to ally himself with me or Pansy. It'll probably be Pansy; they're very close."
Hermione frowned, tightening her grip on Draco's wrists. "Alright. I can't do anything to help you unless I know what they're doing, so keep me informed. When do you think that Pansy and Blaise will start their plans?"
Draco smiled grimly. "They're working right now. Pansy asked Blaise to go to the kitchens with her. They always say they're going to the kitchens when they intend to work on a plot."
Hermione nodded, releasing Draco's wrists and wringing her hands on her skirt. "Okay. Let me know when I can help."
Draco nodded as well, and sharply moved away, turning towards the library door.
"And Draco?"
Draco curved back around, raising his eyebrows in silent question.
"You will tell me why you're so concerned about Harry. I won't make you tell me today, but you will."
Draco gave a half-hearted dip of his chin and smiled, waved a bit with his hand, and disappeared into the bookshelves.
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Why had Malfoy wanted to get rid of him so fast? Harry asked himself, leaning back on his bed. If Slytherins escorting lost students out of their dungeons was really so common, why did Malfoy scram at the sight of his friends?
And most of all, why had Harry felt so comfortable walking through the dungeons with him? There wasn't an awkward silence, like that there should be between two enemies, but a comfortable silence, like those pauses in conversations with Ron and Hermione.
Well, pre-breakup with Ginny conversations, anyway.
"Harry?" A soft voice broke through his musings, and Harry tensed, reaching for his wand on reflex.
"What, Ginny?" Harry demanded, concentrating with all his might on the raindrops outside, and not on exactly how much he wanted to demand that she leave him alone.
The curtains dangling around his bed were suddenly pushed aside, and Harry rolled his eyes as the long hair registered as breaching his bed. Ginny kneeled on the side of the bed, carefully tucking her skirt under her calves and folding her hands on her lap. A few strands of hair fell haphazardly across her face as it stared to her knees, and Harry worked to ignore her obvious distress. Her head rose gradually, and despite his efforts, Harry felt pity for the girl. Red streaks lined her pale face, and puffy bags lay beneath both eyes, signing her distressed lack of sleep. It was no wonder Ron constantly refused to speak to him, if this was the younger sister he was consoling.
"Harry, I know this is uncalled for, but please hear me out." Ginny paused for a second, but straightened a fraction when he didn't interrupt. "I don't know why you broke up with me, but I would like you to give me another chance. If there's anything you want me to improve upon, I'll do it. I-" she froze, but lifted her head and continued, "I really like you, and I know we can make this relationship work, if only we both put effort into it.
"Plus," Ginny leaned forward slightly, holding Harry's eyes. "There have been rumors, you know, since the breakup. Things that are terrible for your reputation. People are saying things about your honor, your faithfulness, all sorts of things. Some people are even saying that a girl needs to be utterly perfect for you to like them, and even then you'll just throw them away when you're through with them, especially if you won't even keep a girl like me." She peered up into his face. "I also think that Ron would be very pleased if you took me back, even if just for a few more months."
Harry leaned back from her, idly noticing how different their relationship was from a few days ago, snogging in the girls' bathroom. He'd been snogging her, and now he was trying to avoid her gaze. But Harry did want to talk to Ron again, even if it came at the price of taking Ginny back. Honestly, though, it wouldn't be so bad if Ginny just had blond hair… short blond hair… like Dra-
Why the hell was Harry just thinking that about Malfoy, again?
Anyway, Ginny. Yes. He wanted Ron to be his friend again. And it would help to take Malfoy off his mind; Harry had been thinking about the boy far too much in the past few hours. Malfoy had probably just run off at the first sight of his friends because he finally had an excuse to get away from Harry-bloody-Potter, or whatever the Slytherins were calling him these days. It would be good for him. Really.
"Okay, Ginny," he heard himself state, and Ginny gave a happy squeal.
"Oh Harry, thank you, so much! Look, if there's anything you want me to change, anything at all, just tell me, and I'll work on it. Oh, Harry, I'm so happy!" With another girlish cry she launched forward onto his lap, immediately straddling him and planting her lips upon his.
Urgh. Harry had definitely not missed this part of having a girlfriend. What's worse, Ginny seemed trying her best to go deeper into their kiss, practically suctioning him with her lips. With an effort like separating a toilet plunger from a loo bowl in a bathroom, Harry wrenched his lips away, ignoring Ginny's heartbroken look.
"Look, Ginny, can we just start slow in light of recent events? I mean, we just broke up. Let's just take it slow, all right?"
Ginny sighed, slowly leaning back and removing her knees from Harry's hips, pressing them together and falling back onto the bed by Harry's legs. "Okay, Harry. I'll take it slow, if that's what you want. But, after being away from you for so long, I just can't help it, you know?"
Harry shook his head, inwardly rolling his eyes. "Not really. Come on, let's go tell Ron and Hermione and the others."
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Draco had to fight not to murder the slight girl in front of him. "Excuse me, Elizabeth, but I could have sworn you just told me that Potter and the Weasley girl got back together after only a few days of being broken up." Draco leaned forward onto the table leaning his head into one palm and covering his mouth. The position slightly mussed his hair, but it could be easily fixed with but a comb.
Elizabeth bounced slightly on the balls of her feet, nodding quickly. She honestly didn't understand Draco's fascination with Harry Potter's relationships, but how was Elizabeth an expert on Malfoy speak? Maybe he was looking for an in to hurt Potter and was angry the relationships weren't stable enough to create lasting damage to Potter.
"That's what I said, Draco. It's unknown exactly what happened, just that the two of them came down from the boys' dormitory all the sudden and announced it to Ron Weasley, and then went to tell Hermione Granger in the library. There's no sign of ill feelings between anyone, Potter and Weasley are just the same as they ever were, minus the snogging."
Draco lifted his head, staring up at Elizabeth and raising his eyebrows.
"Minus the snogging, you said?" He straightened more, smoothing down his hair in the back and folding his hands on his pants, unconsciously leaning forward ever so slightly towards Elizabeth.
Elizabeth nodded, watching him warily.
"All that's been seen is Gi-Weasley giving him a quick peck on the cheek as a greeting in the hallways. Most people think they're just playing it cool after all the rumors that sprung up during the last few days."
Draco's eyebrows fell back into their normal place, but quickly sprung arisen once more. "Did you just almost call the Weasley girl 'Ginny,' Elizabeth?"
Elizabeth felt her cheeks flush pink, and she attempted to fight it back down. Why didn't these things ever work in real life? In the books Heroines always managed to control blushes. And why in front of Draco Malfoy? "Sorry, Draco. It's just that a lot of this information comes from Lavender and Parvati, and they refer to her as Ginny, so I guess I'm just starting to associate the name with the girl is all. Sorry, it won't happen again, I promise."
Draco frowned slightly, but nodded. "I see. You're dismissed, Elizabeth."
Elizabeth breathed a sigh of relief, feeling her face cool back down again.
"Thank you, Draco." She gathered her bag and sprang from the corner, sprinting up the girls' dormitory stairs.
Draco lay back in his chair, pondering the news from Elizabeth. So Harry and the Weasley girl had gotten back together. It would be interesting to find out why, but that wasn't so much an issue. To be truthful, Draco didn't even really know his reaction. Even though Harry had no interest in him, Draco still had retained a small hope that as long as Harry was single, there was the slightest chance that he might be chosen. The moment Harry reunited with the Weasley girl, that hope was once again slashed. On the other hand, though, maybe this would mean that Pansy and Blaise would leave him alone.
The Slytherin sighed, leaning back further into the soft lushness of the chair and closing his eyes. A nice nap… That would do him good…
"Hey Draco, we brought some stuff back for you! Want some?"
Draco frowned and sat up, opening and refocusing his eyes on the object in front of him. A platter of pastries. He looked up the arm holding it and met Pansy's eyes. Wait… they hadn't… actually gone to the kitchens, right? Draco stared back at the platter. They looked too real to be conjured as fakes, and if they were fake, she wouldn't rub his nose in them, because she knew that he could detect them.
Draco pushed up from his chair and walked past her, feeling both Pansy and Blaise's eyes on him. He whirled around, just barely managing to lock his eyes with Pansy.
"I'm going to bed. I'll see you both in the morning." Draco turned and began walking up the stairs toward his bed, listening behind him. There was a flush of fabric movement, and then…
"Hey Draco! You can't do that! It's three in the afternoon! On a Saturday!"